Black Thought Is Releasing Two More Projects And They Are Coming Soon (Audio)

Earlier today (June 1), Black Thought released his first solo project in the form of Streams of Thought, vol. 1, a five-song E.P. featuring production from 9th Wonder and The Soul Council. With it, the longtime MC and founding member of the legendary Roots crew has given fervent Heads a taste of what a solo album from Black Thought would sound like, and the inclusion of “vol. 1” in the title only fanned anticipatory flames. Now, it seems the taste for more will be sated, as ‘Riq Geez just announced two more volumes.

According to a press statement, Streams of Thought is simply “the first in a series of upcoming releases,” with volumes two and three “set to arrive very soon.” Though more details have yet to be released, Thought alluded to his plans for more material in an interview with NPR’s Rodney Carmichael. “None of this is my solo album. It’s just a chance to see me in a different light doing a different thing,” he said, adding that holding back on releasing standalone material was “about the greater good of our organization,” The Roots. He added, “All those solo efforts that I’ve announced, it breathes new life into the awareness of me as an artist. The Roots brand always has to be maintained, and we’re just at a place now where prime-time TV affords us a different sort of visibility and I’m able to kind of take a step back and focus on some of the other creative energy that I still need to get out.”

Though he’s been releasing monumental lyrical content for decades, Black Thought, Carmichael says, hasn’t “exploited his story the way other artists have,” alluding to some of the personal matters in Thought’s life he has yet to fully explore on wax. He lost both of his parents during different times of his childhood, for starters, and he also learned of his father’s involvement with the Black Mafia in his native Philadelphia. Whether these are topics he’ll delve into with more detail on the forthcoming volumes of Streams of Thought remains to be seen, but as he reminded us in his infamous Hot 97 freestyle, Black Thought can rap about anything and make it the standard bearer.